Yizkor memorial for 131 people recently killed by Israel in Gaza and denouncing of CIJA's complicity

May 21, 2018 at 12:54 AM

950 West 41 Avenue, outside, Monday May 21, 12:00pm

On Monday, May 21, the second day of Shavu'ot, when our Jewish tradition provides an opportunity to join together in mourning all those who have died, Independent Jewish Voices Vancouver is gathering for a yizkor memorial service for the 131 people in the Gaza Strip shot dead in recent weeks by Israeli snipers.

We will also publicly denounce the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs for its continual pressure on Canadian political leaders and media sources to silence and minimize Israel's brutality toward Palestinians and, in this case, shift the blame for the killings to the very people who were killed. We will make it clear that CIJA does not represent Canadian Jewry and that political leaders and media sources in Canada need to understand that.

We invite all who share these intentions to gather at noon on the sidewalk at the site of CIJA's local offices, the Jewish Community Centre of Vancouver at 950 West 41 Avenue. We plan to light a yizkor candle, recite the names of the dead followed by the traditional Kaddish prayer. The service is expected to end by 12:30.

For more information, contact after 9:00 a.m.:

Rabbi David Mivasair (604) 781-7839 dmivasair@ijvcanada.org

Nakba70 Events in Vancouver

May 14, 2018 at 12:12 PM

Tuesday, May 15 at 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM

Join us for a picket and PEOPLES' TRIAL on May 15, 2018 as we mark the 70th anniversary of the dispossession and dismemberment of the Palestinian people and nation. Known as the "Nakba", over 400 Palestinian towns and villages were destroyed and/or depopulated in 1948. More than 750,000 Palestinians were driven from their homes and lands, resulting in a Palestinian refugee population now numbering almost 8 million. Canadian officials were complicit in this project in 1947-48 and they are complicit now in the continuing suffering of the Palestinian people. The Canadian government has yet to condemn the Israeli murder of over 40 unarmed Palestinians(and counting) in Gaza since March 30, a number which includes children and journalists. Gaza's population is predominantly refugees expelled in 1948.

I caught up with Samah Sabawi on August 1st, 26 days into the Israeli assault on Gaza. Samah is a Canadian Palestinian with family roots in Gaza. I wanted to ask her views on the current situation in Gaza and particularly on the role Hamas is playing. She is a playwright, a policy advisor to AlShabaka and is former public advocate for Australians for Palestine. She was for many years a media spokesperson for National Council for Canada Arab Relations (NCCAR) and moved in 2009 to Australia where her parents and many other members of her Palestinian family have found refuge.